


Preventative Medicine

by opalmatrix



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Bathroom Sex, Community: yuletide_smut, Drunken Shenanigans, First Time, Holidays, Light-Hearted, M/M, Winter Solstice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-15
Updated: 2017-02-15
Packaged: 2018-09-24 18:47:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9780335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/opalmatrix/pseuds/opalmatrix
Summary: Gojyo tries to distract Hakkai after his long-planned winter solstice celebration falls through.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [EzraTheBlue](https://archiveofourown.org/users/EzraTheBlue/gifts).



> Written for Yuletide Smut 2016. The request included: "Drunk on good spirits. A celebration goes a little too far... or maybe exactly where they needed to go." Thank to my speedy beta [**Lady_Ganesh**](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Ganesh/profile).

The year's first snow had fallen midway through December, frosting everything with white. The skies had cleared after that, and the sun had shone down from a blue, blue vault, barely warming the air for days. The nights had been full of stars, twinkling so brightly that Gojyo had actually kept Hakkai company when he went out to watch them. The first night after the snowfall, they had even seen a few shooting stars.

The whole thing had inspired Hakkai to near-feverish levels of activity. Of course the porch, steps, and path to the road must be swept, and then the end of the path had to be dug out when the patient oxen had dragged the plow down the road from town. Extra coal must be ordered for the boiler, and the firewood must be re-stacked where it was easier to reach from the house. Then it occurred to Hakkai that Goku had never attended a winter solstice celebration, and so elaborate plans were laid. An invitation was send off to the temple, and a grudging but positive response came back from Sanzo the next day.

Gojyo did not really mind accompanying Hakkai to town to lug back pumpkins, sugar, pork, scented tea, boxes of tangerines and yuzu, and bags of glutinous rice and flour. He certainly didn't mind picking up beer and harder stuff. But the amount of housework that Hakkai felt was necessary was an issue. Sometimes Gojyo retreated to the porch, wrapped in virtually every garment he possessed, and smoked his way through an entire pack of cigarettes before Hakkai, exasperated, dragged him back inside for soup and a hot bath. "It's a good thing you finished the installing the soaking tub this autumn," said Hakkai, and Gojyo had to agree as he lolled back in the hot water, a cup of warm sake in one hand.

On the afternoon before the long-anticipated day, the weather broke. First a short, sharp snowstorm delivered a fresh dusting to the crispy surfaces of the older snow. Then the air grew oddly mild overnight. On the solstice day, it started to rain in cold and fitful bursts. The sky was the color of an old tin bucket, grey and white and scabrous, with the sun sometimes pushing through sullenly for perhaps five minutes at a time, only to be swept away again by ranks of sodden clouds. The temperature started to drop again, but the rain kept coming, freezing as it hit the cold surfaces everywhere.

Hakkai, who had been up well before daybreak to start on his holiday cooking, grew ever more silent as the day progressed. By the time the sun would have been at its full height (and maybe it was, but who could see it?), every surface out of doors was a treacherous sheet of ice, an inch or more thick in some places. Trees started to lose their weaker branches from the weight, cracking like gunshots as they broke. "Sounds like that rotten monk is out there practicin' his target shooting, right?" said Gojyo, trying to get Hakkai to smile.

Hakkai's mouth moved, but that was all: his eyes were still empty.

Damn. All their hard work seemed to be going for nothing, and it was raining. Hakkai hated the rain, hated the memories it stirred up. Why the hell did it have to rain like this at the turn of the year?

"Gojyo, no one is going to be traveling today," said Hakkai.

Gojyo was already ahead of him: no way Sanzo would allow himself to be convinced to leave the temple on a day like this. Not even for Hakkai's cooking and the extra special liquor they'd laid in. "Well, you an' me still got to eat, yeah? You can make Goku dumplings some other time. His ears ain't really gonna freeze off because he doesn't have dumplings tonight."

That produced a weak smile. "I'm afraid his ears _would_ freeze off if he tried to make it over here today." Hakkai sighed. "I'll have to cook the pork. We may be eating pumpkin with meat sauce for several days, I'm afraid. Most of the other supplies will keep."

"The pumpkin's supposed to be good luck, right? Maybe it'll make the weather turn."

"Yes, the pumpkin and the rice cake soup and the sticky rice dumplings are all supposed to be good luck. There's also a belief that taking a bath with yuzu at the solstice will prevent one from catching cold for the rest of the winter."

Gojyo noted with approval that Hakkai seemed to be getting less gloomy as he talked. "What? Get out! What, do you squeeze the yuzu juice in the water or somethin'?"

"Oh, no. The whole yuzu fruit are simply placed into the hot bathwater. The skins give off a wonderful fragrance."

Gojyo grinned. "Man, that must look really goofy. Hey! We got that nice big soakin' tub I worked so hard on. Let's try it!"

Hakkai actually got out a little smile. "Well, as to that: why do you think I insisted on an entire crate of yuzu at the market?" He was even starting to _sound_ like himself in a good mood: clever and smug.

"Let's do it! We can have our own holiday celebration." Gojyo's eye fell on the liquor they'd picked up. He grabbed one of the bottles and rummaged in the cabinet for a couple of glasses.

"Gojyo! Plum brandy at one in the afternoon?"

"Gotta get started on the holiday spirit, right?" He worked the stopper out of the bottle and poured them each a couple of fingers of the amber liquid, then passed one of the glasses to Hakkai. "There ya go. Kampai!"

He tossed back his own glass. It burned pleasantly all the way down. After a moment, Hakkai sipped his own and raised his eyebrows, "Very pleasant, if a bit strong."

"You finish that and get the bath going. I'll get in some more coal an' kindling," said Gojyo.

He tromped off to the lean-to attached to the back of the house. By the time he came back with the full coal scuttle, he could hear the water running in the tub. He stoked the boiler and made sure there was a good stack of kindling by the stove, then washed up in the kitchen sink. He was pleased to see Hakkai's empty glass on the counter. He grabbed a tray and put the glasses and the re-stoppered bottle on it and then carried it to the bathroom.

Hakkai was in his dressing gown, watching the tub fill. Clouds of steam were already billowing up. "When are ya gonna put in the yuzu?" asked Gojyo.

"Any minute now, I should think," said Hakkai. "What's the brandy doing in here?"

"We might want some more, right? An' then I'd have to go out to the kitchen and let in a draft."

"I suppose," said Hakkai, in a way that implied he didn't agree.

Gojyo just smiled. "I'll be right back." He stripped to his shorts in the bedroom and came back. The scent of the yuzu wafted out when he opened the bathroom door again. The tub, almost halfway full, had more than a dozen golden fruits bobbing in it, and it looked just as silly as he'd guessed it would. "You can go first," he said. "I'll scrub your back." 

Hakkai's cheeks were a little pink: the heat in the bathroom, maybe, or the plum brandy. "Alright," he said, and turned slowly to hang up the bathrobe. He looked almost shy as he sat down on the bath stool to soap up, but really, there was not an inch of him that Gojyo had not already seen. He took the bath brush and scrubbed Hakkai's bony back gently. Hakkai was a little tense at first, but soon he was relaxing into it.

"I can wash your hair, too," suggested Gojyo. "You do mine all the time."

"My hair is hardly long enough to need anyone's assistance," said Hakkai, but he closed his eyes and let Gojyo wet down his hair and rub in the shampoo. Gojyo did his best to be gentle and give Hakkai a little scalp massage, the way Hakkai did to him when he did Gojyo's hair. It was kind of like pleasing a woman with his hands, he thought—and then wondered why he'd thought of such a thing. "That feels nice," said Hakkai, softly.

Gojyo smiled to himself, feeling a bit smug. He rinsed Hakkai's hair carefully with the shower hose. "Lift up your arms, and I can get the rest of you," he said. 

Hakkai's face was like that on a statue of the Bosatsu, all calm and gleaming and beautiful (and not at all like Hir Actual Snarkiness), as Gojyo rinsed him down. When all the soap was gone, Hakkai grabbed a hand towel to shield his crotch modestly (kind of stupid, Gojyo thought, but he guessed that old habits died hard) and stepped into the hot bath. The yuzu bobbed and swirled around as he seated himself gingerly in the heat, folded the towel onto his head, and then lay back with a sigh.

Gojyo got the brandy bottle and poured Hakkai another slug. "Here ya go. Take it easy for a few minutes. You work damn hard."

Hakkai took it and murmured "Thank you." He sipped gently as the fragrant steam rose around him. Gojyo got his own drink and watched him for a moment. Then he tossed back the brandy. He stripped off his boxers, wobbling just a bit, and started to wash himself down. Hakkai opened his eyes. "I didn't think I was ready to come out yet," he said.

"You don't need to. I think I can fit in there too." Gojyo lathered up the sponge and rubbed it over himself.

"Gojyo." Hakkai's face was quite pink and he was watching Gojyo out of the corner of his eyes. Gojyo winked as he rinsed himself off and reached for the shampoo. "This tub isn't _that_ big," protested Hakkai.

"Mm, yeah, it is," said Gojyo, eyes closed, as he rubbed the shampoo though his hair. "Sit tight, I'll be right there." He rinsed off his hair and then wiped his face. Hakkai was huddling toward the back corner of the tub, gathering the yuzu toward himself. "Hey, don't worry, they'll just float away from me," said Gojyo, with a big grin.

He stepped into the tub. Hakkai snatched the towel from his head and tried to shield himself with it as he stood up, but the cloth did not quite manage to hide Hakkai's enormous hard-on. Water sloshed and yuzu tossed like ships on a stormy sea. "Whoa!" said Gojyo, impressed.

Hakkai collapsed slowly and sat on the edge of the tub, hiding his face in the towel instead. "Ah ha ha," he said, only slightly muffled by the terrycloth. His ears were bright red.

Poor Hakkai. Poor Hakkai's dick, with no one to fuss over it since his sister's death. It had never occurred to Gojyo that Hakkai had a thing for him, but there was no arguing with the evidence.

Gojyo sank down to kneel in the hot, sweet-smelling water and put his hands on Hakkai's knees. "Hey, it's OK, buddy. I got this."

Hakkai lowered the towel to peer over it. "Gojyo, you like _women_."

Gojyo shoved his hair back and leered. "Yeah, I do, but this is a special occasion, and you're a special guy," He leaned forward, wrapped one hand around Hakkai's thick shaft, and licked at the gleaming, dusky head. 

Hakkai gave a muffled yelp. It sounded like he was trying to stuff the towel into his mouth. Well, that meant both of them had their mouths real full, thought Gojyo. Hakkai was a lot bigger than Banri, and his cock tasted clean and a little salty. _This is kind of awesome, actually_. His own dick twitched a little, agreeing.

He wasn't sure how far down he'd be able to go because this was one seriously big cock, but before he could spend much time worrying, Hakkai whimpered and came. Gojyo got a lot of it in his mouth, but it was dribbling down his chin. It would be in the bathwater in a second. He heartlessly plucked away Hakkai's towel and wiped things down, spitting out the rest into the cloth and wadding it up.

"Gojyo," breathed Hakkai, leaning back against the tiled wall. He looked stunned. Stunned and drunk and pretty. It was a good look on him.

"Pretty good for someone who doesn't really do this stuff, huh?" said Gojyo, reaching down to stroke himself.

"Oh gods, yes." Hakkai reached for one of the big towels and wiped off his face. "Oh dear. Look at you. Let me help."

Hakkai still sounded like his Hakkai-self, a little prissy. It shouldn't have been a turn-on, but it was. "Sure," said Gojyo, tossing the towel into the far corner of the bathroom and arising from the bathwater, the yuzu bumping his legs and thumping softly against the side of the tub. Hakkai tut-tutted at the tossed towel and shifted to sit astride the side of the tub. "Come here," he said, opening his arms. "Sit in my lap."

"Hey, I can't say no to an invitation like that," said Gojyo and straddled the side of the tub likewise, easing back until he could feel the brush of Hakkai's softening erection. Hakkai put his arms around him. "You smell so good," he murmured into the side of Gojyo's neck.

"Wow, you sweet talker, you."

Hakkai was nibbling on him now, and his hands were roaming down Gojyo's belly, stroking through the coarse hair, and finding the hard rod. He closed one hand over it and started working it cautiously. _He's probably never done it to someone else before,_ thought Gojyo, and put one of his own hands over Hakkai's, helping him with the pace.

It felt fantastic. Gojyo's head was swimming with waves of pleasure from his dick, the brandy, and the thick, wet, yuzu-scented air. He gasped and came, striping the tiled wall and floor with his spend.

"Such a mess," Hakkai murmured into his hair.

"Yeah, I do good work." said Gojyo, and snickered. Hakkai gave him a little smack on one flank, then stood and started to mop up the mess. Gojyo hoisted himself back into the tub and settled down, watching Hakkai move around. He was so slim and so well muscled, all at the same time. And that neat little ass.

Hakkai turned and caught Gojyo looking. He blushed again, but he had a soft little smile as well. And Gojyo was surprised to find that he was blushing back. There was an awkward silence, and then they both smiled.

"Well. That was unexpected but pleasant," said Hakkai, lightly. "I think I'll go make our lunch. You have a good soak: I expect we will be entirely free of colds this winter."

"Best solstice celebration ever," said Gojyo and closed his eyes.


End file.
